Railroad rail and joint



(No Model.)

J. WOLFENDEN. RAILROAD RAIL AND JOINT. No'. 247,978. Patented Oct.4,1881. 8

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES WVOLFENDEN, OF LOCK HAVEN, PENNSYLVANIA.

RAILROAD RAIL AND JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 247,978, datedOctober4,1881

Application filed September 6, 1881. (No model.) 7

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JAMES WoLFENDEN, acitizen of Great Britain, residing in Look Haven, Clinton county, in theState of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsrelating to Railroad Rails and Joints, ofwhich the following is aspecification.

My improved joint is of that class in which a portion of the metal ofeach rail is removed and the rails caused to overlap each other orsplice together.

The invention consists in the manner in which the rails and clamps areformed and fitted into each other, and will be understood from thefollowing description and claims.

The following is a description of what I consider the best means ofcarrying out the invention.

The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification.

Figure 1 is a plan view with apot tion broken away. It shows the railsat the joints with proper relations withoutthe inclosing-clamps. Fig.2is a cross-section on the line B R in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view ofthejoint. is a cross-section on the line S S in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is ahorizontal section on the lineT Tin'Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is the section on theline U U in Fig. 3. It is a section through the body of the rail at apoint removed from the joint.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in all the figures. A

A A are the rails, certain portions being designated by further marks,as A A 850., when necessary to distinguish them.

A is the head. A is the broad base, sometimes known as the flange, and Ais the upright portion joining the flange and the head, universallyknown as the web. The web A instead of being centrally placed in therail, is placed one side of the center. In order to compensate for thedisadvantage which this may be supposed to involve, I make the web alittle thicker than would he esteemed economical for a correspondingrail with the web in the center. Having thus attained the conditions ofa soundand every way reliable rail with a web out of center, I place theseveral rails alternately in oppositepositions-thatis to say,

that its web is out of center to the left.

Fig. 4:

'if the first of a given line of rails is placed with its web out ofcenter to the right, the second rail in that'line which abuts or jointsagainst it at the end is reversed in position, so The third is again outof center to the right, and so on alternately. The rails may be allformed in the same rolls and exactly alike, care being taken to'simplyplace them alternately end for end. The webs are formed just so much outof center that one face of eachweb is in the central line of the ra-il.,These faces are made plane.

In preparing the splice I subject the rails to the action of saws,splining mechanism or other proper machinery, with the metal of the raileither in a cold or hot condition, and operate so as to remove asnffieient length-say about eight inches-of one side of the head and ateach end. This removal of a portion of the head and flange at each endof each rail is always on the side opposite to that which contains theweb. Takingcare to make the shoulder -or offset where each splice endssquare and 'bythe single letter M. I will designate certain parts ofeach by further marks M M 850.

These clamps M M are applied together in reverse positions, and held bytransverse bolts P extending across below the flange of the rail. Theybind the splice firmly and strongly together without weakening any partof either rail by any hole or notch. Each clamp M is formed with aninternal offset, M, which applies in the space beyond the end of thenearest adjacent web. It is, in other words, an internal thickening oroffset in the clamp, made just sufficient to match past one of the webs,

so that while the main inner surface of the clamp bears fairly andfirmly against the stout web A, which, by the position of the rails,lies on that side of the center line of the rail, this offset M extendsinward just sufficient to allow for the thickness of that flange andcause this portion of the clamp to bear against the web A of the otherrail. In other words, the inner faces of the clamps are fitted to matchto the peculiarly-lapped condition of the two vertical webs A, wherethey lie side by side, preserving the full thickness of each.

The upperportion of each clamp other than the offset M is marked M Thepart of each clamp which extends out and back around the broad thin baseA of the rails is marked M A broad extension downward below the flangeof the rails is marked M. A slight internal lip at the bottom of eachdownward extension M is marked M. This lip M need not be anything morethan a slight thickening on the inner face of each clamp. When theclamps are applied together these lips M face together and form a broadfirm hearing, which serves as a fulcrum to allow the bolts P to draw theupper portions of the clamps very solidly together. The holes for thebolts P are form ed through the downward extension M, and arere-enforced with suflicient metal, to loosely inclose the bolts and forma stout bearin g, M, on each side to receive the heads and nuts of thebolts I, as will be obvious.

The invention allows of the introduction of thin or thick rubber, felt,or other elastic material above or below the flange A of the rail or onthe inner faces of the firmly-bearing portions M M but I do not esteemsuch an addition generally expedient. I prefer that the parts beardirectly together, metal and metal, and that they are nicely shaped toafiord as firm a hearing as possible, to produce a final effect asnearly that of a single massive shape of metal as can be obtained.

Railroad practice proves that thejoints, however thickened andfortified, are still not only the most imperfect portions of the trackby way of introducing roughnesses and oifsets in the paths for thewheels, but also in being more liable to fracture and looseness thanother portions of the track, and all ordinary joints are more elasticthan themain portions of the rails. My joint avoids danger of looseness,and by the duplication in the thickness of the web and the firmness withwhich the parts are supported by my clamping means gives a rigidityequal to and somewhat greater than that of the main body of the rail.

Modifications may be made in the forms. I can vary the thickness of thewhole or all of the various parts. The bottom lip, M, can be reduced ordispensed with altogether. I can employ a greater number of bolts P thantwo. One stout boltfirmly set up and reliably locked may be foundsufficient.

The material of all the parts may be varied. I can use hard or softiron, all the grades of steel or semi-steel, or various combinations ofthese favorite metals. My invention may be used with steel-headed rails.In the rare cases where the head or the whole rail shall be hardenedsteel the shaping can be fully completed hoforehand.

I do not confine myself to any precise mode of shaping the parts. Ipropose to make the clamps of cast-steel or semi-steel by the process ofcasting complete; but they may be made by forging by suitable dies intrip-hammers or drop-presses.

The invention may be applied to doubleheaded or triple-headed rails bysimply providingforthe thick and rounded portions which such railspresent at the bottoms.

I claim as my invention-- The rail-joint clamp described, having the topbearing-surface, M lateral folded parts M deep central web, M, bottombearing rib or surface, M and bolt-bearings M adapted to serverelatively to each other and to the confining-bolts P and inelosed railsas herein specified.

2. The railway-joint clamp described, having the internal projections,M, adapted to abut against the ends of the webs of the rails, the upperbearing-surface, M foot-embracing portion M bottom flange, M", lip orbearingsurface M and one or more bearings, M, arranged to receive theconfining-bolts P. all substantially as herein specified.

3. The railway-joint described, having the clamps M, formed as shown,and the confiningbolts P, in combination with each other and with railshaving webs A out of center, all arranged to serve as and for thepurposes herein specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, at New York city, this27th day of August, 1880, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES VVOLFENDEN.

Witnesses:

M. F. BOYLE, H. A. J OHNSTONE.

